Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Guest room fees

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On Dec 18, 2014, at 5:48 PM, Eris Weaver <eris [at] erisweaver.info> wrote:

> I confess I do not understand the reasoning of those of you who DO charge.
> The amount most cohos charge seems to be low, does it really offset costs?
> Or is it mostly symbolic?

I resisted this for years. Why charge for the guest rooms and not for the 
laundry, workshop, use of the computer, etc?

One argument people gave is that the guest rooms are used exclusively for 10 
days at a time. The other resources are not.

I think the tipping point was when the guest room pod measured the use. One 
household used the guest room 40 days a year, many not at all, and others less 
than 7.

A third reason is the number of people who stay who are not visiting friends 
who live here. Usually they are cohousing members vacationing or in town for 
business (on expense accounts). A member has to host them and ensure that the 
rooms are clean and linens washed with they leave. They want the community to 
benefit from their work. 

I still tend to agree with Eris, but would prefer a system where each unit has 
5 days free and pays for additional days. We still have very wide variations in 
days of use.

Our finance people have also resisted having these fund earmarked for the guest 
room -- refurbishing, cleaning, etc. I think 50% for the general operating 
budget and 50% for the guest room operations. Perhaps 75%/25%. Our rooms have 
just received a donation of $1,800 so that will pay for some large purchases. 

We need slat beds so we have storage under them and smaller places to hang 
clothes. The rooms don't have closets and the donated wardrobes are much too 
large for the rooms.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org